Vastus
Vastus was the Prime Glatorian of the Jungle Tribe and a former Field Commander in the Core War. Biography Early Life Similarly to all other members of his species, Vastus began his life on Spherus Magna, hailing from the jungle regions of Bota Magna. Desiring something more than the life of a woodcarver, he trained under Certavus as an apprentice from an early age, becoming both a competent tactician and a high-ranking general in the Element Lord of Jungle's army. By the time of the Core War, Vastus had come to befriend Tarix, a rival field commander of the Water Tribe. Over the course of the ensuing conflict, the pair would interact on several occasions and develop something of an alliance. Core War During the earliest days of the conflict, Vastus lead a mission to infiltrate an Ice Tribe village and trigger an avalanche to block off the main road from the mountain. However, the avalanche they caused was larger than anticipated, and half the village was destroyed, resulting in casualties upwards of one thousand innocent Agori. Horrified by his complicity in the tragic event, Vastus became grief-stricken by the weight of his transgression. Scouting the northern regions of the planet in the final days of the Core War, Vastus would later coordinate his Jungle Tribe forces in an ambush against Tarix's contingent. Catching his ally off-guard and slicing him with a toxin from his Venom Talon, Vastus offered his rival a chance to share his intelligence in exchange for an antidote to nullify the numbing effects of the infection. Joining forces, Vastus and Tarix conferred with each other as old allies, allowing their platoons to fraternize while they planned a joint assault upon a mining shaft, allegedly developed by the Elemental Lord of Ice to access underground Energized Protodermis reserves. Setting out in search of the tunnel, the Water and Jungle squadrons soon happened upon Malum's Fire Tribe contingent, intent on engaging the Ice Tribe legions directly. After three of Vastus' troops were captured and eliminated by Malum's forces, Tarix began planning an ambush, much to Vastus' disapproval. Catching early warning of Certavus' squadron in the area, the Jungle commander proved unwilling to try his luck against the tactical genius of his former mentor and instead ordered his troops to beat a hasty retreat, leaving the Water Tribe soldiers to cover their escape. With Energized Protodermis reserves in the planet's core losing stability due to increased mining activity and depletion of natural reserves, a global shockwave known as The Shattering was triggered, causing planetary fragmentation and propelling two large chunks of the planet away from the surface and into upper orbit. Participating in a battle in the central belt of Spherus Magna, Vastus was among the multitude of combatants who would become trapped on Bara Magna. Prime Glatorian Devastated by the apparent loss of the Elemental Lords as well as a majority of his troops, Vastus was one of several Field Commanders who appealed for an end to the conflict in the midst of such destruction. Working closely with Certavus and Tarix, Vastus was known to have been instrumental in negotiating a truce between the remaining Water, Ice, Jungle, and Fire tribes. With Tarix later establishing the Glatorian Creed, the denizens of Bara Magna recognized a collective unifying movement revolving around Glatorian arena matches so as not to risk armed conflict over the few resources available for each tribe. Taking residence in the twin cities of Tesara unknowingly built from the wreckage of the Prototype Great Spirit Robot, Vastus was known to have established himself as Tesara's Prime Glatorian champion. Taking it upon himself to train a new generation of Glatorian warriors, Vastus was known to have imparted the teachings of Certavus and groomed Gresh to become the Jungle Tribe's Secondary Glatorian. Over the course of his long career, Vastus was known to have rekindled his friendship with Tarix, who would often visit him whilst passing through Tesara. Sparring together with some frequency, the two Glatorian proved themselves equally matched. Participating sparingly in the annual Great Tournament, Vastus often proved himself a favored combatant to win following the death of Certavus. On more than one occasion he was known to have won the Great Tournament and earned the title of Champion, enabling him to charge a higher bounty for his services and stake a larger claim over any winnings. Roughly a year ago, following a dispute over resources between Tesara and Vulcanus, the leader of the Jungle Tribe appealed to Vastus to leave the comfort of their twin settlements and meet the challenge of Malum. Traveling to Vulcanus for the match, Vastus was dealt a crushing defeat at the hands of his adversary. Injured an overwhelmed, Vastus was left at the mercy of Malum, who attempted to kill his fallen opponent only for Strakk to intervene and ward Malum away. In the aftermath of the confrontation, Vastus' injuries aroused concern amongst the Prime Glatorian. With the other village elders growing increasingly unwilling to risk the safety of their warriors in an arena match with Malum, the Glatorian community banded together behind Strakk in his ensuing arena match against Malum. Attempting to kill his adversary once more after winning the match, Malum was apprehended by Gresh and restrained by a number of Glatorian spectators. With Iconox filing a formal complaint based upon the legacy of his attempts upon both Strakk and Vastus, Malum was thus exiled from the Fire Tribe and Vulcanus was forced to forfeit the match, paying reparations towards both villages. Having finally recovered from his injuries, Vastus recently journeyed to Atero arena to participate in the Great Tournament. With a marked Rock Tribe absence causing concern amongst the Agori community, Vastus was one of many competing Glatorian who chose to celebrate a more open field of competition. However, a Skrall strike force swiftly came to storm the city of Atero during the first arena match between Tarix and Strakk. Called to arms, Vastus and his fellow Glatorian combatants attempted to drive off the invading Skrall only to find themselves overwhelmed. Beating a hasty retreat, Vastus escorted the Jungle Tribe Leader and a number of Agori spectators to safety. Regrouping with his allies, Vastus witnessed Tarix pledging to defeat the Skrall before returning to Tesara with his fellow Jungle Tribe spectators. Vastus was more recently approached by Gresh in his quarters in Tesara, appealing to his former mentor to aid in the defense of Vulcanus after intelligence of a Bone Hunter raid. Still embittered by his defeat in Vulcanus arena and unwilling to leave Tesara undefended, Vastus declined. When approached once more by a collective group of Glatorian, Vastus reconsidered and traveled to Vulcanus. Arriving at the climax of the siege, Vastus aided in the defense effort, paralyzing several Bone Hunters with his Venom Talon. Eventually, the Glatorian were able to drive the invading Bone Hunter forces from the settlement. Some time after the attempted siege on Vulcanus, Vastus escorted Gresh and Tarduk around the outer perimeter of Tesara, surveying the terrain for a group of Agori laborers to construct a wall around the village. Following the arrival of Mata Nui on Bara Magna, the Water Tribe and Jungle Tribe became involved in a dispute over a spring water oasis between their two villages. With Tajun sending Tarix to Tesara Arena for an arena match, Vastus stepped up to the occasion and playfully met the challenge of his friend. However, before the match became fully-fledged, it was was disrupted by Ackar, who informed the arena of a Bone Hunter raid on Tajun. Met with mixed reactions but earning the audience of both Vastus and Tarix, Ackar proposed a counterattack on Roxtus in the hopes of driving both the Skrall and Bone Hunters from Bara Magna. Persuaded by Ackar, Vastus took up arms the following day, his Venom Talon now imbued with Elemental Air capabilities, and joined a campaign to drive the Rock Tribe from their ancestral home in Roxtus. Bulldozing over the enemy forces with their numbers, the unified Agori and Glatorian movement eventually won the day, suffering minimal losses and winning a decisive victory, driving the Skrall out into the Wastelands. Shortly afterwards, Vastus then assisted in the construction of the single, unified city. After the villages were united as per Mata Nui's specifications, Vastus, like the rest of Glatorian, took up residence in the Mega-Village for a short period of time, guarding the Agori amidst rumors of an impending battle. Later, when Mata Nui returned from his journey to the north, Vastus and his fellow tribesmen were forced to vacate the structure so as to power up the Prototype Great Spirit Robot and engage the hostile Matoran Universe, which had become visible in the upper atmosphere of Bara Magna. As the two robots engaged in a confrontation, Vastus assisted the inhabitants of Bara Magna in debilitating the Matoran Universe, enjoying limited success. Aware of their presence, however, Teridax took the opportunity to release legions of Rahkshi onto the planet's surface. Fighting alongside Tarix for the duration of the conflict, Vastus was relieved from battle with the Rahkshi with aid from Toa Tahu, who using the Golden Armor to vaporize the Rahkshi forces. Mata Nui was then able to complete his mission of reforming Spherus Magna from Bara Magna, Bota Magna and Aqua Magna. Following The Reformation, Sperhus Magna was revitalized into a paradisaical world able to accommodate the denizens of both Bara Magna and the Matoran Universe. Spherus Magna Following the reformation of Spherus Magna, Vastus came to participate in the new social system. Collaborating with Gelu, the two Glatorian were able to carry on the teachings of Certavus, detailing his principles in a new Book of Certavus. Abilities and Traits Due to his actions during the Core War, Vastus bears a hefty weight upon his conscience, and strives to redeem himself for his wartime transgressions. Throwing himself into service of the Jungle Tribe Agori to rectify his sins, he grew fiercely protective of Tesara, his adoptive village. Unwilling to leave the settlement unguarded, Vastus often instructed secondary Glatorian to fight arena matches in foreign villages, staying almost exclusively within the confines of the twin settlements of Tesara. During the Core War, Vastus was known to have happened upon carving of ancient meditation techniques employed by ancestors of the Agori, enabling him to hear the air currents generated by a target's movement. Able to battle just as capably with his eyes closed, it has long-since been the believe of Jungle Tribe Agori that he cannot be ambushed, able to sense attack patterns coming from behind. After his arrival on Bara Magna, Mata Nui used the Kanohi Ignika to unlock Vastus' innate elemental Air powers. Once elementally-enabled, Vastus came to create bursts of wind, manipulate currents, and absorb oxygen from a target area. Additionally, Vastus was able to channel Air through his Venom Talon. Tools Armed principally with a dual-handed scythe named the Venom Talon, Vastus was known to possess a particularly notable weapon. Forged from the fang of a Talon Snake, the blade was often tipped with various toxins and numbing agents, allowing the user to paralyze infect the bloodstream upon piercing the epidermal tissue of a target. Mounted on the tip of his Venom Talon, Vastus was also equipped with a rudimentary Thornax Launcher. Forms Trivia *Vastus was voiced by James Arnold Taylor in BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn. *Vastus' name is derived from the Finnish word vastus, the term for opponent. Appearances *''World of Chaos'' *''The Ways Entwine'' Category:Glatorian Category:Air Category:Jungle Tribe Category:Characters